Beverly Cleary Turns 100 Next Month

Beloved children's book author Beverly Cleary turns 100 on April 12, and in advance of the milestone, the author of the Ramona and Henry Huggins series (among many, many others) spoke to Today. Asked if she was excited to turn a century old, Cleary remarked, "Well, I didn't do it on purpose." Cleary, who didn't learn to read until second grade, was inspired to write children's books because she couldn't relate to the characters in the books that were around when she was young: "The children had nannies and pony carts, and they seemed like a bunch of sissies to me," she says. (More Beverly Cleary stories.)